United Community Banks (NYSE:UCB) Upgraded by Wall Street Zen to Hold Rating

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of United Community Banks (NYSE:UCB) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research note published on Saturday,Wall Street Zen reports.

Several other research analysts also recently commented on the company. DA Davidson lifted their price objective on United Community Banks from $40.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. TD Cowen upgraded United Community Banks to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Piper Sandler raised their price target on United Community Banks from $37.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised United Community Banks from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $39.40.

United Community Banks Price Performance

UCB stock opened at $35.30 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $4.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.61 and a beta of 0.81. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $35.58 and its 200 day moving average is $33.81. United Community Banks has a 52 week low of $28.65 and a 52 week high of $37.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 0.83.

United Community Banks (NYSE:UCB) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The company reported $0.71 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.80 by ($0.09). United Community Banks had a return on equity of 9.61% and a net margin of 24.43%.The business had revenue of $279.28 million during the quarter. Research analysts predict that United Community Banks will post 2.98 earnings per share for the current year.

United Community Banks Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 5th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.26 per share. This is a boost from United Community Banks’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 15th. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.9%. United Community Banks’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 34.21%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Jefferson Harralson sold 25,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.41, for a total transaction of $885,250.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 37,433 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,325,502.53. The trade was a 40.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Richard Bradshaw sold 1,424 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.09, for a total value of $49,968.16. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 83,228 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,920,470.52. This represents a 1.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders own 0.45% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of United Community Banks

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Engineers Gate Manager LP purchased a new stake in shares of United Community Banks during the 2nd quarter valued at about $925,000. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC purchased a new stake in United Community Banks during the second quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Squarepoint Ops LLC raised its position in United Community Banks by 71.6% in the second quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 48,011 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,685,000 after acquiring an additional 20,039 shares during the period. Allworth Financial LP raised its holdings in United Community Banks by 10.1% in the 2nd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 3,256 shares of the company’s stock worth $114,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the period. Finally, Nykredit A S bought a new position in shares of United Community Banks in the second quarter worth about $229,000. 82.29% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

United Community Banks Company Profile

United Community Banks, Inc is the bank holding company for United Community Bank, a regional financial institution headquartered in Blairsville, Georgia. Founded in 1950, the company provides banking and financial services to individuals, businesses and institutions across the Southeastern United States.

United Community Bank offers consumer and commercial deposit accounts, residential and commercial real estate lending, business loans, mortgages, treasury management and other financial services.